Judge
Patti
B.
Saris,
who
is
overseeing
the
Nosalek

commission
lawsuit,
made
the
decision
to
stay
the
case,
pending
Judge
Stephen
R.
Bough’s
ruling
on
the
nationwide commission
lawsuit settlement
agreement reached
by
the National
Association
of
Realtors (NAR)
in
March.

According
to
Saris’
order,
the
plaintiffs
have
30
days
after
Bough’s
ruling
to
file
their
supplemental
preliminary
approval
of
settlement.
Additionally,
the


Department
of
Justice
will
have
90
days
to
review
the
settlement
agreement
as
stipulated
in
the

Class
Action
Fairness
Act.

By
staying
the
suit,
Saris
is
delaying
her
ruling
on
defendant

MLS
Property
Information
Network’s

settlement
agreement.
Saris

granted
preliminary
approval
to
MLS
PIN’s

first
proposed
settlement
agreement
in
September
2023.
But
soon
after,
the

DOJ
intervened
due
“significant
concerns”
about
MLS
PIN’s
settlement.
Since
then,
the
court,
the
DOJ,
the
plaintiffs
and
MLS
PIN
have
gone

back
and
forth
trying
to
create
a
settlement
that
the
DOJ
will
accept.

In
addition
to
MLS
PIN,
the
four
other
defendants
in
the
suit
—


Anywhere,


RE/MAX,


Keller
Williams
and


HomeServices
of
America
—
have
each
reached
nationwide
settlement
agreements
of
the
seller-side

commission
lawsuits.

The
settlements
for
RE/MAX,
Anywhere
and
Keller
Williams
have
already
been
granted

final
approval
by
Bough.
But
the

HomeServices
of
America
settlement,
which
was
filed
much
later,
has
not
yet
been
granted
final
approval.

In
making
the
decision
to
stay
the
Nosalek
suit,
Saris
is
taking
the
opposite
tack
of
Judge
William
Stickman,
who
is
overseeing
the

Moratis
commission
lawsuit.
Stickman
denied

West
Penn
MLS’
motion
to
stay
the
suit.
West
Penn
MLS

sought
the
stay
as
it
opted
in
to
NAR’s
settlement.

MLS
PIN
did
not
wish
to
comment
on
this
development.
RE/MAX,
Anywhere
and
Keller
Williams
did
not
return
a
request
for
comment.

Chris
Kelly,
executive
vice
president
of
HomeServices
of
America,
wrote
in
an
email
to

HousingWire
that
the
industry
is
currently
working
hard
to
adapt
to
the
business
practice
changes
outlined
in
NAR’s
settlement.

“What
is
essential
now
is
a
clear
and
timely
resolution
of
the
ongoing
legal
issues
and
a
collaborative
approach
from
all
stakeholders
involved,”
Kelly
said.
“This
clarity
will
enable
the
industry
to
guide
consumers
effectively
through
the
evolving
landscape
of
buying
and
selling
homes
—
a
process
that
our
brokerages
and
agents
are
embracing
with
proactive
and
positive
determination.

“It
is
our
hope
that
we
can
avoid
a
start-and-stop
approach
or
the
need
to
shift
abruptly
to
a
completely
different
set
of
practices
based
on
future
rulings,
as
such
disruptions
could
significantly
impact
the
consumers
we
aim
to
serve.”

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